The Lufthansa Group has further expanded and specified its flight cancellations to the Middle East in light of the dramatic military situation. The company announced that all group airlines – including Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, and Swiss – are suspending their services to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Amman, Erbil, Dammam, and Tehran until at least March 8, 2026.
In parallel, the group's aircraft are avoiding the airspace over Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, as well as over Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Iran. This decision is based on a continuous security assessment of situation reports, which currently deem regular air traffic operations unacceptable.
The operational situation at major hubs in the Gulf region remained critical on Monday. Reports confirmed that key airports such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Kuwait sustained partial damage in Iranian retaliatory strikes, leading to significant disruptions or complete closures. While Lufthansa Group flights to and from Dubai and Abu Dhabi have been canceled until at least March 4, data from flight tracking services shows virtually empty airspace over much of the region. A recent NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) has extended the closure of Iranian airspace until at least March 3 due to fears of further missile attacks.
The latest spiral of violence was triggered by the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in US and Israeli attacks last Saturday. As a result of these events, the German Foreign Office has issued a travel warning for more than a dozen countries in the region. So far, over 10.000 German citizens have registered on the crisis preparedness list "ELEFAND" to be informed about evacuation options in case of emergency. Those affected, including both tourists and Germans living abroad permanently, are urged to maintain close contact with their tour operators and airlines, as commercial departure options are currently very limited.
The Lufthansa Group announced that it will reassess the situation daily and make the resumption of flights dependent on the security situation on the ground. Passengers whose flights have been canceled can rebook free of charge or request a refund of the ticket price. Industry experts point out that the diversion of long-haul flights to Asia, which now have to take a wide detour around the crisis area, is leading to significant flight time extensions of up to two hours. This not only increases airlines' fuel costs but also puts massive pressure on global crew deployment plans and connecting flights at European hubs.